Former employees of Wahlburgers in Brooklyn claim they were denied wages, file lawsuit

Wahlburgers in Coney Island is accused of cheating five former workers out of wages. (Corey Sipkin/New York Daily News)

Wahlburgers' Coney Island outpost is getting heat from five former employees who claim restaurant management routinely denied them their wages.

Celeb chef Paul Wahlberg and his brothers, actors Mark and Donnie, launched the Wahlburgers chain outside of Boston in 2011.

Advertisement

Wahlburgers, which is also the subject of an eponymous A&E reality show, opened in Brooklyn last September — and has since been "rampant with wage theft and violations of federal and state labor law," according to a new lawsuit.

Wahlburgers in Coney Island didn't pay employees for all their hours worked — and stiffed them on overtime while pocketing employees' tips, the Brooklyn federal lawsuit alleges.

Once, the restaurant even bilked employees out of $3,000 in tips from a cast party organized by "Blue Bloods" star Donnie Wahlberg in March.

This Wahlburgers, which is a franchise and not owned by the main restaurant company, also set up an illegal tip pool. This tip pool forced workers to fork over their money to non-tipped kitchen staff.

Donnie Wahlberg was aware of issues at the restaurant, court papers claim.

During another party at the restaurant in early August, one of the ex-employees suing Wahlburger Coney Island "reported to Donnie Wahlberg that there was a lot going on at the restaurant that he needed to know about."

"Donnie Wahlburg replied 'I know,'" the lawsuit states.

The Wahlberg brothers are not named as defendants in the lawsuit.

The Coney Island restaurant's management declined comment.

Wahlburgers told the Daily News it is looking into the allegations.

"Wahlburgers is all about family, and treating people fairly and with respect is at the heart of our brand," the company said in a statement. "Since this situation came to light today, we've been working with Coney Burgers to better understand the circumstances and help bring this matter to resolution."

The lawsuit, which seeks class action status, is demanding back wages and unspecified money damages.

Lawyers for the former employees, Mitchell Schley and Louis Pechman, said the suit is yet another example of widespread wage theft in New York's restaurant industry — with Schley saying the allegations conflict with Wahlburgers' working-class image.

"That only goes so far" Schley said. "That's nice for the branding. It's one thing to talk the talk. It's one thing to walk the walk."

Advertisement

"Any restaurant reality show that takes place in New York needs to have a wage lawsuit episode," Pechman said.